“Harry Potter” star Daniel Radcliffe gained access* to a reported fortune of 20 million pounds (US$40 million) when he turned 18 on Monday, but he insisted the money won’t influence him.

The young actor said he had no plans to waste his cash on fast cars, drink and celebrity* parties.

“I don’t plan to be one of those people who, as soon as they turn 18, suddenly buy themselves a sports car or something similar,” he told an Australian interviewer earlier this month. “I don’t think I’ll be particularly extravagant*. The things I like buying are things that cost about 10 pounds — books, CDs and DVDs.”

At 18, Radcliffe will be able to gamble* in a casino*, buy a drink in a pub or see the horror film “Hostel: Part II,” currently six places below his number one movie on the U.K. box-office chart.

Details of how he marked his birthday remained secret. “I’ll definitely have some sort of party,” he said in an interview. “Hopefully none of you will be reading about it.”

Despite his growing fame and riches, the actor said he is keeping his feet firmly on the ground.

“People are always looking to say ‘kid star goes off the rails*,’” he told reporters last month. “But I try very hard not to go that way.”

His latest movie “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” is breaking records on both sides of the Atlantic and he will reprise* the role in the last two films.

There is life beyond Potter, however.

The Londoner has filmed a TV movie called “My Boy Jack,” about author Rudyard Kipling and his son, due for release later this year. He will also appear in “December Boys,” an Australian film about four boys who escape an orphanage. (SD-Agencies)